The weblog of Norman Geras

January 30, 2013

93 per cent of a humanist

That's me, that is - according to this little exercise offered by the British Humanist Association. If I may engage in a little pedantry in reporting that result, the set of options they give you for responding to their prompts isn't always well constructed. For example, 'I can tell right from wrong by...' allows you the following:

Accepting what my parents and teachers say.

Thinking hard about the probable consequences of actions and their effects on other people.

Reading a holy book or listening to a religious leader.

I don't really think about it much. People should just do as they like.

From these options I could only take the second. But it's incomplete: consequences shouldn't be the whole story, as I've argued here. How much of a humanist are you?